The Complete Idiots Guide to Learning Italian
Год выпуска: 2001, 2е издание
Автор: Gabrielle Ann Euvino
Жанр: Учебное пособие на английском языке
Издательство: Alpha Books
Серия: The Complete Idiots Guide
ISBN: 0028641477
Качество: eBook (изначально компьютерное)
Количество страниц: 480
Описание:
-1-
Ciao, bella o bello! Crack The Complete Idiot's Guide to Italian, Second Edition and you'll have a one-stop resource for getting a handle on this beautiful language-whether you are traveling to Italy for vacation or chatting with the host at your favorite Italian ristorante. The new edition includes a new and improved Italian-English glossary, more practical exercises, easier-to-read tables, a quick travel reference and new sidebars on dialect.
-2-
You're feeling romantic, and you'd like to say "I love you" in Italian. Maybe you'd rather not read the English subtitles of Roberto Benigni's next movie. Or you want to ask for directions in Italian the next time you're in Rome.
To better appreciate opera, sound like a native when ordering penne alla braccio di ferro, or whisper sweet nothings to your sweetheart in Italian, I suggest starting with The Complete Idiot's Guide to Learning Italian, Second Edition, by Gabrielle Euvino.
There are many ways to describe the book - new and improved! idiot-proof! better than ever! - but one thing is certain: what was already a comprehensive approach to learning la bella lingua has now become an even more exhaustive resource with new and exciting features that will enrich your Italian language learning experience and motivate you in unimaginable ways.
Gabrielle Euvino is a highly respected educator, author, and translator. She is founder and director of La Bella Lingua, a company that conducts language and cultural tours in Italy. Gabrielle has also written several snappy articles, including What Makes Art a Masterpiece and Sleep Tips For Frequent Travelers.
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Learning Italian has down-to-earth advice on communicating in Italian, idiot-proof tips for enlarging your vocabulary, and a handy quick-reference of commonly used phrases. Plus, there's an expanded Italian-English glossary and several types of exercises to reinforce what you've learned. The book is divided into four sections:
•
The Basics: fundamentals of Italian focusing on grammar, pronunciation, and basic expressions
•
You're Off and Running: verbs in every flavor, the modal verbs, adverbs, and prepositions
•
Fun and Games: learn how to shop, order from an Italian menu, and discuss l'arte, musica, and il cinema
•
Getting Down to Business: learn all about the post office, traveling in Italy, the doctor's office, and money matters
The book has simple pronunciation guides, phonetic spellings, accent and dialect pointers, vocabulary lists, and two glossaries, all designed to encourage you to speak Italian. Each chapter is structured with an overview of concepts followed by straightforward, uncomplicated lessons, practice exercises, and a review of the key principles. Interspersed throughout the material are sidebars, boxes highlighting definitions of terms, historical facts about Italy, and notes on idiomatic usage. Sample chapters in The Complete Idiot's Guide To Learning Italian include Italian For Business Travelers, Sound Like An Italian, and An Action-Packed Adventure.
Ready to join the burgeoning group of (not really) idiot savants who have already learned Italian with this valuable book? You can be an idiot too - all it takes is a few simple steps. First, forget everything you've ever learned in high school language class. Second, ignore anyone who says you're too old, too young, too stupid, or too busy to learn Italian. Third, start turning the pages of The Complete Idiot's Guide To Learning Italian and fare la practica con la bocca! Which, if you were to start studying, means "practice with your mouth" - or, start talking, because isn't that what communicating is all about?
-3-
Это второе издание книги.
Есть уже и третье. Ибо итальянский язык - четвёртый по распространённости в Америке.
Contents at a Glance
Part 1 The Basics 1
1 Why You Should Study Italian 3
Imagine the reality of speaking Italian and see all the reasons.
2 Immerse Yourself 11
Learn about dialect, the history of Italian, and using your dic-
tionary. In addition, there’s a quick grammar refresher to get
your language studies started on the right foot.
3 Sound Like an Italian 25
Learn the basic rules of Italian pronunciation.
4 You Know More Than You Think 39
Tie English and Italian together using cognates.
5 Expressively Yours 53
In this chapter you’ll learn the fundamentals: how to say hello
and good-bye, your days of the week, and idiomatic expressions.
6 Almost Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex 69
In Italian all nouns are assigned a gender—learn what to do
about it.
7 What’s the Subject? 85
Study the different ways of expressing “you” in Italian. Learn
how to determine the subject in a sentence.
Part 2 You’re Off and Running 91
8 An Action-Packed Adventure 93
Learn about the different verb families and regular rules of con-
jugation.
9 Being There 111
See all the different ways of using “to be” with the verbs essere
and stare, and learn how to construct several idiomatic expres-
sions using the verb avere (to have).
10 Tell Me About Your Childhood 129
Learn how to express possession using adjectives and the prepo-
sition di, as well as how to describe things with adverbs.
11 Finally, You’re at the Airport 149
Now that you’ve landed, you’ll be given helpful vocabulary to
enable you to get around. Learn about prepositions and the im-
perative verb tense.
12 Moving Around 165
Drive away with the terms you need to make your journey
safe. Study your numbers to log those kilometers and talk about
time. Also find out how to use the verb fare (to do/to make).
13 Hallelujah, You’ve Made It to l’Hotel 187
Get comfortable inside your room using the practical vocabulary
lists. Express your desires with volere (to want), your potential
with potere (to be able to), and what you’ve got to do with
dovere (to have to).
14 Rain or Shine 205
Talk about the weather, make a date, and discuss your horo-
scope.
Part 3 Fun and Games 221
15 I Can’t Believe My Eyes! 223
See the sights and study the verbs you need to get around and
make suggestions, as well as how to use the present progressive
tense.
16 Shop ’Til You Drop 241
Learn everything you wanted to know about objects and object
pronouns while perusing Italy’s wonderful shops.
17 Bread, Wine, and Chocolate 261
Visit the market and sample the many culinary delights while
improving your linguistic abilities. Express your pleasure with
the verb piacere.
18 Shall We Dine? 281
Chew on the terms and learn how to read an Italian menu and
order special meals. See how reflexive verbs work.
19 Having Fun Italian Style 303
You can sing, dance, and paint the town red with these
terms. Learn how to talk about what you had been doing using
the passato prossimo.
Part 4 Getting Down to Business 323
20 You’re Not Having Un Buon Giorno 325
Cope with life’s little nuisances, get your hair done, and learn
how to make comparisons.
21 Is There a Doctor in the House? 341
Tell the doctor where it hurts with these terms. Learn how to
talk about what used to be with the imperfect tense.
22 Can You Read Me? 355
Make a telephone call, send a package, and write a letter. See
how to use the future tense to talk about what will be.
23 Home Sweet Home 369
In the market to own a home? Want to rent a villa? Talk about
the conditional and learn how to express what you would like.
24 Money Matters 381
Learn the international language of money with these helpful
banking terms. Also learn the subjunctive and past absolute.
Appendixes
A Answer Key 395
B Glossary 411
C Map of Italy 441
D An Idiot’s Guide to Additional Resources 443
Index 445
Contents
Part 1: The Basics 1
1 Why You Should Study Italian 3
You Love Life ............................................................................................4
Get Real ....................................................................................................5
Getting Wet ..............................................................................................6
Immerse Yourself—Literally! ......................................................................6
Become a Class Act ..................................................................................6
Hang Out with Sophia ..............................................................................7
Get the Right Tools ....................................................................................7
Tune In! ....................................................................................................7
Read the Fine Print ....................................................................................7
Find Birds of a Feather ..............................................................................7
Play It Again, Salvatore ............................................................................8
There’s Nothing to Stop You ....................................................................8
2 Immerse Yourself 11
Latin Lovers ............................................................................................12
How Do You Say …? Dialect ..................................................................13
Tuscan Italian ........................................................................................14
So What’s Your Story? ............................................................................15
How Much Italian Is Enough? ................................................................16
Your Dictionary Is Your Best Friend ........................................................16
Speak Easy ..............................................................................................17
Person, Place, or Pasta ............................................................................17
Descriptively Speaking ............................................................................18
Who’s He? ............................................................................................18
It’s All Relative ........................................................................................18
Where the Action Is ................................................................................18
It All Depends on How You Look at It ..................................................19
Practice Makes Perfetto ............................................................................19
What’s the Object; Who’s the Subject? ..................................................21
Drawing from Esperienza ........................................................................21
Read It, Write It, Say It ............................................................................22
3 Sound Like an Italian 25
Italian Pronunciation ..............................................................................25
Your ABCs ................................................................................................26
Getting the Accent ..................................................................................26
Don’t Get Stressed Out ............................................................................27
Rolling Your R’s ......................................................................................28
The Long and the Short of It: Vowels ....................................................28
The Hard and Soft of It: Consonants ....................................................29
Practice Those Vowels ............................................................................31
Give Me the Combo ................................................................................31
C Is for Casa ..........................................................................................32
G Is for Gamba ......................................................................................32
S Is for Scandolo ....................................................................................33
Dipthongs ................................................................................................34
Double Consonants ................................................................................35
A Is for Ancona ........................................................................................36
Get Help! ................................................................................................37
Patience and Practice Pay Off ................................................................38
4 You Know More Than You Think 39
Cognates: A Bridge Between Languages ................................................39
A Little Fantasia ....................................................................................40
If It Looks Like a Duck … ......................................................................41
Where in the World: Places ....................................................................42
It’s About Time ......................................................................................43
How Intelligente You Are! ......................................................................43
Adjectives: How Grande! ........................................................................44
Nouns ......................................................................................................45
Masculine Nouns ....................................................................................45
Feminine Nouns ......................................................................................45
English Words Used in Italian ................................................................46
Trojan Horses—False Friends ..................................................................47
How Much Do You Understand Already? ................................................47
Your Turn ..............................................................................................47
Verb Cognates ........................................................................................48
A Piece of Cake ......................................................................................49
Put It All Together ..................................................................................51
Translation Please ..................................................................................51
What’s Your Take? ..................................................................................51
Are You Well Read? ................................................................................52
5 Expressively Yours 53
How Do You Do? ....................................................................................53
You Say Hello and I Say Good-Bye ..........................................................53
Stranger in a Strange Land ......................................................................54
The Most Important Phrases in Any Language ........................................55
Informal Greetings and Salutations ........................................................56
Communications ....................................................................................57
I Giorni: Days ..........................................................................................58
I Mesi: Months ........................................................................................58
Expressing Your Honest Opinion ............................................................60
Idiomatically Speaking ............................................................................61
Happy as a Lark ....................................................................................61
What Is Slang? ......................................................................................62
Idiomatic Expressions in Italian ............................................................62
It’s All in the Details ..............................................................................63
Practice Makes Perfetto ..........................................................................64
A Good Hour ..........................................................................................64
Going Mad ..............................................................................................65
What’s Your Opinion? ............................................................................66
Seventh Heaven ......................................................................................67
6 Almost Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex 69
Determining Gender: He Versus She ......................................................69
Masculine or Feminine ............................................................................69
Everyone Must Agree ..............................................................................70
An Article Is Not What You Read in a Newspaper ................................70
The Definite Article (The) ........................................................................70
An Indefinite Article (A, An) ....................................................................71
Singular Nouns ........................................................................................72
Hermaphrodites ......................................................................................73
Nouns Ending in –e ................................................................................74
Rules Are Made to Be Broken ..................................................................75
Disconcerting Genders ............................................................................75
Misbehaving Males ................................................................................76
Rebellious Females ..................................................................................77
Sex Changers ..........................................................................................77
The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far ......................................................................78
Practice Makes Perfetto ..........................................................................78
More Is Better: Making Plurals ................................................................78
Do We Agree? Plural Noun Markers ........................................................79
The Rules ................................................................................................80
Plural Spelling ........................................................................................81
La Pratica ..............................................................................................81
What Does It Mean? ..............................................................................82
Irregular Plural Nouns ............................................................................82
Always Plural ........................................................................................83
Practice Those Plurals ............................................................................83
What Have You Learned About Gender? ..................................................83
7 What’s the Subject? 85
Your Loyal Subject ..................................................................................85
Subject Pronouns ....................................................................................86
When to Use Subject Pronouns ................................................................87
Name That Subject ..................................................................................87
Subject to Interpretation ..........................................................................88
You and You and You ..............................................................................88
Hey You! ................................................................................................89
Part 2: You’re Off and Running 91
8 An Action-Packed Adventure 93
All in the Family ....................................................................................94
The Anatomy of a Verb ..........................................................................94
The Present-Tense Conjugations ..............................................................95
The –are Family ......................................................................................96
C Is for Celebrare ..................................................................................96
Regular –are Verbs ..................................................................................97
Exceptions ............................................................................................100
Practice Makes Perfetto ........................................................................101
The –ere Verbs ........................................................................................102
S Is for Scrivere ....................................................................................102
Regular –ere Verbs ................................................................................103
Practice Makes Perfetto II ......................................................................105
The –ire Family ......................................................................................106
D Is for Dormire ..................................................................................106
The –ire Verbs (Group I) ........................................................................106
More –ire Verbs (Group II) ....................................................................107
C Is for Capire ....................................................................................107
The –ire Verbs (Group II) ......................................................................107
Asking Questions ..................................................................................109
The Tags Vero? No? and Giusto? ........................................................109
And the Risposta Is … ..........................................................................109
A Whole Lot of Niente ........................................................................110
9 Being There 111
The Birds and the Be’s ..........................................................................112
The Verb Essere ......................................................................................112
The Verb Stare ........................................................................................113
Essere vs. Stare: What’s the Difference? ................................................114
When to Use Essere ..............................................................................114
Come Sei Intelligente! ......................................................................114
When to Use Stare ................................................................................115
Chitchat ..............................................................................................115
C’è and Ci sono (There Is, There Are) ....................................................116
Asking Questions ..................................................................................116
Say It Isn’t So ........................................................................................116
Fill in the Blanks ..................................................................................116
It’s Time to Have Some Fun: Avere ........................................................117
When to Use Avere ..............................................................................118
An Idiot’s Guide to Idioms with Avere ..................................................118
Express Yourself ....................................................................................119
Professionally Speaking ........................................................................120
In My Professional Opinion ..................................................................120
So, What’s Your Story? ..........................................................................122
We, the People ......................................................................................123
Nationalities ........................................................................................124
Do You Believe? ....................................................................................125
Back to Your Roots ................................................................................126
Ecco! ......................................................................................................126
Eureka! ................................................................................................127
10 Tell Me About Your Childhood 129
One of the Famiglia ..............................................................................129
Are You Possessed? ................................................................................131
Using Di to Show Possession ................................................................131
Forming Contractions with Di ..............................................................131
Possessive Adjectives ............................................................................132
A Sense of Belonging ............................................................................134
It’s Good to Know ................................................................................134
Sapere: To Know Something ..................................................................134
Conoscere: To Know Someone/To Be Acquainted ..................................135
Making Introductions ..........................................................................135
This Is My … ........................................................................................135
This Is My Brother … ............................................................................136
Who Is Who ..........................................................................................136
Tall, Dark, and Handsome ....................................................................136
Modifying Adjectives ............................................................................136
Modifying Those Adjective Endings ........................................................137
Character Analysis ................................................................................138
A Real Wise Guy ..................................................................................138
Take the Good with the Bad ..................................................................140
I Colori ................................................................................................140
One Yellow Banana, Please ..................................................................141
It’s a Colorful World ............................................................................142
Everyone’s a Poet ..................................................................................142
Bello and Quello ....................................................................................143
Make the Connection ............................................................................143
Buono ....................................................................................................144
How Do You Do: Adverbs ....................................................................144
Forming Adverbs from Adjectives ..........................................................144
Take Your Place ....................................................................................145
A Lot of Adverbs ..................................................................................146
Adverbs of Time ....................................................................................146
Adverbs of Place ....................................................................................147
The More Things Change ......................................................................147
11 Finally, You’re at the Airport 149
On the Plane ........................................................................................149
In the Comfort Zone ..............................................................................150
On the Inside ........................................................................................151
Going Crazy: The Verb Andare ..............................................................152
Going, Going, Gone ..............................................................................154
All Verbed Up and Everywhere to Go ....................................................154
Prepositions: Sticky Stuff ......................................................................154
A Few Points on Prepositions ................................................................156
Contractions ..........................................................................................157
Switcharoo ............................................................................................159
The Imperative: Giving Directions ......................................................159
The Regular Imperative Endings ............................................................159
The Imperative Using Tu and Lei ..........................................................160
Tell Me What to Do ..............................................................................161
Dazed and Confused ............................................................................161
Passively Yours: Si ..................................................................................162
La Dogana (Customs) ............................................................................162
12 Moving Around 165
Hoofing and Spinning ..........................................................................165
Which One? ..........................................................................................166
On the Road ..........................................................................................167
Behind the Wheel ................................................................................168
Automobile Parts ..................................................................................169
The Road Less Traveled ........................................................................171
Tell Me Your Worries ............................................................................172
Baby, I Got Your Number ....................................................................172
Cardinal Numbers ................................................................................172
Number Crunching ................................................................................174
Time Is of the Essence ..........................................................................175
Time Will Tell ......................................................................................177
It’s Not What You Do, but with Whom You Do It ..............................177
Questions, Questions ............................................................................178
Ask Away ..............................................................................................178
All Aboard ............................................................................................179
Verbiage ................................................................................................181
Practice Those Conjugations ..................................................................182
Getting On with Salire ..........................................................................182
Things to Do: The Verb Fare (to Do; to Make) ....................................182
Idiomatic Expressions Using Fare ..........................................................183
What Are You Doing? ..........................................................................184
What to Do, What to Do ......................................................................184
13 Hallelujah, You’ve Made It to l’Hotel 187
A Cave Will Do ......................................................................................187
A Room with a View ............................................................................188
Simply Said ..........................................................................................189
Get Cozy ..............................................................................................189
Room Service, Please ............................................................................191
Is There Room at the Inn? ....................................................................191
Let’s Make a Deal ................................................................................192
Practice Makes Perfetto ........................................................................192
Your Firma Here, Please ........................................................................192
La Mancia (Tipping) ............................................................................193
Who’s on First? ......................................................................................194
The Ordinal Numbers ............................................................................194
Feeling Moody: The Modal Verbs ........................................................195
I Want What I Want! (Volere) ............................................................195
I Think I Can, I Think I Can! (Potere) ..................................................196
I Have to … (Dovere) ..........................................................................197
I’m in the Mood for … ..........................................................................198
Infinitive Verbs and Prepositions ........................................................198
Alone at Last ........................................................................................199
Oddballs ..............................................................................................199
The Preposition A ..................................................................................200
Learning by Example ............................................................................201
A Review of the Irregular Verbs ............................................................201
Practice Makes Perfetto II ....................................................................202
14 Rain or Shine 205
Talking About the Weather: Che Tempo Fa? ........................................205
Il Clima: The Climate ............................................................................207
Dipinto di Blu ....................................................................................208
La Temperatura: What’s Hot and What’s Not ........................................209
The Four Seasons ..................................................................................210
Buon Viaggio! ..........................................................................................210
Give Your Mind a Trip ..........................................................................211
It’s a Date! ............................................................................................212
Talking About Months ..........................................................................212
What Century? ......................................................................................212
A.D. ......................................................................................................212
1,000 Years Later ..................................................................................213
B.C. ......................................................................................................214
Do You Have un Appuntamento? ..........................................................214
About Last Night ..................................................................................214
The Dating Game ................................................................................215
How Often? ..........................................................................................215
Dating Dilemmas ..................................................................................216
Quando Quando Quando? ................................................................216
Quale Festa? ........................................................................................217
From What Realm Are You? ..................................................................217
What’s Your Sign? ................................................................................218
Like a Fish to Water ..............................................................................219
Part 3: Fun and Games 221
15 I Can’t Believe My Eyes! 223
Seeing Is Believing ................................................................................223
Let’s Go Visit, Find, See, Look At … ....................................................225
Critters ..................................................................................................225
More Irregular Verbs ..............................................................................226
Uscire (to Go Out/Exit) ........................................................................227
Venire (to Come) ..................................................................................227
Rimanere (to Remain) ..........................................................................228
Your Turn ............................................................................................229
Practice Makes Perfetto ........................................................................230
Dire (to Say/Tell) ..................................................................................231
The Power of Suggestion ......................................................................231
Perché non? ........................................................................................232
Let’s … ................................................................................................232
How About …? ......................................................................................232
Using Non to Make Suggestions ............................................................233
Yes or No ..............................................................................................233
Using Volere to Make Suggestions ........................................................233
The Big, Blue Marble ............................................................................234
Name That Nation ................................................................................234
I Continenti ........................................................................................235
Once Upon a Time ................................................................................235
A Refresher ............................................................................................236
Present Progressive Tense (–ing) ............................................................237
Making Progress ....................................................................................238
That’s the Fact, Giacomo ....................................................................238
16 Shop Til You Drop 241
Stores Galore ........................................................................................241
The Stationery Store: La Cartoleria ........................................................243
Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend ........................................................244
It’s in the Jeans ....................................................................................245
Accessories ............................................................................................246
How Do I Look? ....................................................................................247
One Size Does Not Fit All ......................................................................248
The Florist ..............................................................................................250
Smooth as Seta ....................................................................................250
Sock It to Me! ........................................................................................251
Objection! ..............................................................................................253
A Little Review ......................................................................................253
Objectify Me, Baby ................................................................................253
Follow the Rules ....................................................................................254
When to Use the Direct Object Pronoun ................................................255
When to Use Indirect Object Pronouns ..................................................255
Verbs That May Use an Indirect Object ..................................................256
Who’s in Command? ............................................................................257
Who’s Who ..........................................................................................257
Who’s Who II ......................................................................................258
Who’s Who—Final Round ....................................................................259
17 Bread, Wine, and Chocolate 261
To Market, to Market ............................................................................261
Dal Negozio (at the Store) ....................................................................261
I Love Olives ........................................................................................262
An Apple a Day ....................................................................................264
In Macelleria (at the Butcher) ..............................................................265
Got Milk? La Latteria ..........................................................................267
Di Bocca Buona ..................................................................................268
Fruit of the Sea: La Pescheria ..............................................................268
What’s in a Name? ..............................................................................269
This Drink’s on Me ..............................................................................270
Dolcezza! ............................................................................................271
Expressing Quantity ..............................................................................271
It’s the Quantity That Counts ................................................................271
You Asked for It; You Got It! ..................................................................273
Give Me Some! ......................................................................................273
Some or Any: The Partitive Ne ..............................................................273
Some Practice ........................................................................................274
Facciamo La Spesa ..............................................................................274
What’s Your Pleasure? The Verb Piacere ................................................275
Using Piacere ........................................................................................275
Using the Verb Piacere ..........................................................................277
Using the Verb Piacere II ......................................................................277
A Special Treat ......................................................................................278
18 Shall We Dine? 281
So Many Restaurants ............................................................................281
Two for Dinner, Please ..........................................................................282
What’s the House Special? ....................................................................282
A Table Setting ......................................................................................283
In the Kitchen ......................................................................................284
Il Bar ....................................................................................................285
Il Caffè ................................................................................................286
Etiquette for Idiots ................................................................................286
The Courses ........................................................................................287
What’s on the Menu? ............................................................................287
Ho Una Fame Da Lupo (I’m as Hungry as a Wolf) ..............................289
La Pizza e Il Formaggio ......................................................................289
That’s the Way I Like It ........................................................................291
Spice Up Your Life ................................................................................291
Special People Have Special Needs ........................................................292
You Call This Food? ..............................................................................293
Fine Wine ............................................................................................294
A Bellini Please ....................................................................................295
What’s Your Fancy? ..............................................................................295
La Dolce ..............................................................................................295
Double Object Pronouns ......................................................................296
You’ve Got Good Reflexes ....................................................................297
I Call Myself ........................................................................................298
Flexing Those Muscles ..........................................................................299
A Little Reflection ................................................................................300
Mirror, Mirror ........................................................................................300
Test Your Reflexes ..................................................................................301
Reciprocity ............................................................................................302
19 Having Fun Italian Style 303
Name Your Game ..................................................................................303
You’re Playing with My Head ................................................................305
Out in Left Field ..................................................................................305
Make a Date ........................................................................................306
The Arts ................................................................................................307
Il Cinema ............................................................................................307
La Musica ............................................................................................309
Life Imitates Art ....................................................................................312
Il Passato Prossimo (the Present Perfect) ................................................313
Constructing the Past Participle ............................................................314
Forming the Past with Avere ................................................................315
Irregular Past Participles ......................................................................315
Forming the Past with Essere ................................................................316
Verbs Taking Essere ..............................................................................317
Adverbs in Compound Tenses ................................................................319
Direct Object Pronouns in Compound Tenses ........................................319
Indirect Object Pronouns and the Passato Prossimo ..............................320
The Passato Prossimo and Double Object Pronouns ..............................321
Part 4: Trouble in Paradise 323
20 You’re Not Having Un Buon Giorno 325
Get Down to the Basics ........................................................................325
Mirror Mirror on the Wall … ................................................................327
Do Blondes Really Have More Fun? ......................................................328
In Tintoria (at the Dry Cleaner’s) ........................................................329
Dal Calzolaio (at the Shoemaker’s) ......................................................330
Dall’Ottica (at the Optician’s) ..............................................................330
Dal Negozio di Fotografia (at the Camera Shop) ..................................331
In Giolielleria (at the Jeweler’s) ............................................................331
Nel Negozio Elettronico (at the Electronics Store) ................................332
Help, I Lost My Passport! ......................................................................332
Stressed Out ..........................................................................................333
Stressful Exercise ..................................................................................334
Comparatives and Superlatives ............................................................335
Better Than the Best ..............................................................................336
Irregular Comparisons ..........................................................................337
Comparisons of Equality ......................................................................338
Absolutely, Totally Superlative ..............................................................339
Ci and Vi ................................................................................................339
Go On and Brag a Little ........................................................................340
21 Is There a Doctor in the House? 341
What a Bod! ..........................................................................................341
Farsi ....................................................................................................342
Express Yourself ....................................................................................343
What Ails You? ....................................................................................344
Tell Me Where It Hurts ........................................................................345
This Isn’t Funny Anymore ....................................................................345
Feeling Funny ......................................................................................346
This Is What You Have ........................................................................347
Alla Farmacia (at the Pharmacy) ..........................................................348
Questions ..............................................................................................349
La Profumeria (The Cosmetics Store) ....................................................349
I Was What I Was: The Imperfect ........................................................350
Formation of the Imperfect ....................................................................351
Fill in the Spazio ..................................................................................352
La Pratica ............................................................................................352
What’s Done Is Done ............................................................................353
A Review ..............................................................................................353
22 Can You Read Me? 355
Il Telefono ..............................................................................................355
Types of Phone Calls ............................................................................356
Reach Out ............................................................................................356
Call Me Sometime! ................................................................................357
Say What? ............................................................................................358
Making Una Telefonata ......................................................................358
Hello, Operator? ....................................................................................358
Just the Fax ............................................................................................359
Rain or Shine: The Post Office ..............................................................360
Rain or Shine ........................................................................................361
Getting Service ......................................................................................361
Dear Gianni ..........................................................................................362
Che Sarà Sarà: The Future ......................................................................363
What Will Be Will Be ..........................................................................364
What Will You Have? ..........................................................................364
Look for the Pattern ..............................................................................365
Irregular Stems ......................................................................................365
Back to the Future ................................................................................366
The Future Perfect ................................................................................367
23 Home Sweet Home 369
Your Home Away from Home ..............................................................369
Inside Your Home ..................................................................................370
Buying or Renting ..................................................................................371
Useful Verbs ..........................................................................................372
Bright, Spacious, and Cheap ..................................................................373
How’s Your Italian? ..............................................................................373
That Would Be Nice: The Conditional Tense ......................................374
Forming the Conditional Tense ..............................................................374
What Would You Have? ........................................................................375
Look for the Pattern II ..........................................................................376
Stem Changing Verbs ............................................................................377
Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda ....................................................................377
Practice Makes Perfetto ........................................................................378
24 Money Matters 381
Bank on It ..............................................................................................381
Transactions ........................................................................................384
The Wheel of Life ..................................................................................385
Everyone Has Needs: Il Congiuntivo (The Subjunctive) ........................386
Using the Subjunctive ............................................................................386
Oh, So Moody ......................................................................................388
Dependent Clauses and the Subjunctive ................................................388
Practice Makes Perfetto ..........................................................................390
The Past (Present Perfect) Subjunctive ....................................................391
Purely Speculation: The Imperfect Subjunctive ........................................392
The Past Was Perfect ............................................................................392
Once Upon a Time: Il Passato Remoto ................................................392
Ci Fu Una Volta (Once Upon a Time) ..................................................393
Cose Da Vedere ..................................................................................394
What Am I? ........................................................................................394
Appendixes
A Answer Key 395
B Glossary 411
C Map of Italy 441
D An Idiot’s Guide to Additional Resources 443
Index 445
